Hamlet Within (2023)
Hamlet Within is a radical cinematic investigation of the myth of Hamlet, its origins, and its universal appeal across cultures and belief systems.
Hamlet Within is a radical cinematic investigation into the myth of Hamlet, its origins and its enduring appeal across cultures and systems of beliefs. Drawing on post-modernist movements in Art, History, Philosophy, and Psychoanalysis, the work asks the question: "why Hamlet" and more appropriately perhaps, "why Now".
“McMullen’s film rightly captures the way our conception of Hamlet’s character is shaped by history”
— Michael Billington, The Guardian, 2022
As we delve into this inquisitive journey, actors and scholars come together in a semi-fictional discourse to expose the myths and principles behind Hamlet's construct as a folk story appropriated by Shakespeare in the late 16th Century. Shot in five acts and framed by a prelude and an epilogue, the work is a "meta modernist" collage of acted real-life monologues and staged dialogues, deciphering Hamlet's intricate plot and referencing some if its famous Soliloquies.
Hamlet Within, subtitled Five Acts in Search of a Murderous Prince
McMullen also draws from his extra-ordinary archives of interviews with some of the most important thinkers of the 20th century to argue the validity and viability of the myth in today's world.
A modern-day version of Shakespeare's 'Hamlet', which explores a young man's psyche as he contemplates avenging his father's death.